We have a pretty large ten-game slate on the board for this fine Friday night. Let’s dive into some pick recommendations for DraftKings.
Check out today’s NBA Sharpshooter from DraftKings 
Guards
Bradley Beal (PG/SG – WAS): $10,100 vs. Hawks
This is the game of the night for fantasy purposes, as two of the league’s worst fantasy defenses square off. Beal’s price has found its way to five-digits, which gives us some pause in deploying him, but he’s still easily the best way to grab exposure to this game. Beal has been cruising right along lately, shooting the ball 24 or more times in eight straight. He has not seen fewer than 21 shot attempts since January 17. He is also chipping in big time in assists, giving him one of the highest floor/ceiling combos in the game. The matchup with the Hawks is a plus, as they have allowed guards to go 5.8x return on their nightly salaries against them. This is probably my favorite way to spend big money tonight.
Trae Young (PG – ATL): $9,900 at Wizards
If you want to spend a couple hundred less than Beal, you can do it this way. Young has had a spectacular season, racking up a 1.33 fantasy point per minute rate with a 35% usage rate. The Wizards are truly an awful defense, allowing opponents to beat their average fantasy point output by 14. They give up an average return of 5.7x on salary to opposing guards. I prefer Beal in the spot just because he feels a bit safer, but Young is a fine consolation prize if you cannot find that $200.
We have a pretty large ten-game slate on the board for this fine Friday night. Let’s dive into some pick recommendations for DraftKings.
Check out today’s NBA Sharpshooter from DraftKings
Guards
Bradley Beal (PG/SG – WAS): $10,100 vs. Hawks
This is the game of the night for fantasy purposes, as two of the league’s worst fantasy defenses square off. Beal’s price has found its way to five-digits, which gives us some pause in deploying him, but he’s still easily the best way to grab exposure to this game. Beal has been cruising right along lately, shooting the ball 24 or more times in eight straight. He has not seen fewer than 21 shot attempts since January 17. He is also chipping in big time in assists, giving him one of the highest floor/ceiling combos in the game. The matchup with the Hawks is a plus, as they have allowed guards to go 5.8x return on their nightly salaries against them. This is probably my favorite way to spend big money tonight.
Trae Young (PG – ATL): $9,900 at Wizards
If you want to spend a couple hundred less than Beal, you can do it this way. Young has had a spectacular season, racking up a 1.33 fantasy point per minute rate with a 35% usage rate. The Wizards are truly an awful defense, allowing opponents to beat their average fantasy point output by 14. They give up an average return of 5.7x on salary to opposing guards. I prefer Beal in the spot just because he feels a bit safer, but Young is a fine consolation prize if you cannot find that $200.
Goran Dragic (PG – MIA): $5,900 at Pelicans
Dragic has played 29 or more minutes in four straight games. He’s settled into a bit of a groove, scoring 40 or more DraftKings points in two of those games. He has attempted 15 or more shots in his last three games and is averaging more than eight three-point attempts in that stretch. The Pelicans are a very exploitable defense with point guards, so Dragic makes for a really nice value play tonight.
D.J. Augustin (PG – ORL): $3,000 at Timberwolves
This is not a recommendation that I’m proud of, but if you need a stone-minimum punt for some reason, Augustin could bring you 20 DraftKings points here. He has played seven games since his return from injury, and he has stepped fully into the backup point guard role. He has had some real dud games, which is always a risk with a guy of this caliber playing so few minutes, but if he can get a few extra minutes and hit some shots tonight, that’s really all he’ll need to do to find his way to a 7x return on salary.
Forwards / Centers
Kristaps Porzingis (PF/C – DAL): $9,300 vs. Grizzlies
The Mavericks are in a really nice spot tonight against the Grizzlies, as Memphis adds seven fantasy points to their opponents’ average totals and is one of the fastest-paced teams in the league. The problem with the Mavericks is that they really only have two interesting players for fantasy when everybody is healthy, and they are both very expensive. For tonight, I’ll take the savings on Porzingis (compared to Doncic at $11,300) to get some exposure to this matchup. The Zinger has played awesome this year, averaging 1.23 fantasy points per minute with a strong 27% usage rate, which is even more impressive considering what Doncic has been doing all year. The price is probably correct on him, given slightly less upside here, but I don’t see too many paths for Porzingis to let us down in this spot.
John Collins (PF – ATL): $8,500 at Wizards
It’s a bit of a high price to pay, but before Collins’ last game, when he made just four of his eleven shot attempts, he had scored 46 or more DraftKings points in three-straight games. Tonight he gets the softest interior defense in the league. The Wizards give up an average salary return of 5.8x to big men this year, and Collins is one of the most talented big men they will face. I love this game for fantasy purposes, and Collins is a good way to get some exposure at a lower price than the two big point guards featured here.
Myles Turner (C – IND): $5,200 vs. Bulls
I’ll give Turner a shot in tournaments. He had been playing some solid ball before his last game, going over 30 DraftKings points four-straight times. At this price tag, that would be an excellent return. Also working in his favor is the matchup with the Bulls, as they have averaged a 5.8x salary return for opposing centers this year. Turner is always a low floor player with foul trouble and a lack of shot attempts, but his salary is far too low for this matchup.
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Jon Anderson is a featured writer at FantasyPros. For more from Jon, check out his archive and follow him @JonPgh.
